By: Christine Berglund

TRADITION. Does the word bring to mind things such as old, stifling, stuffy, or outdated? Or does it give you a feeling of familiarity, history, memory, or connection? It probably depends on the context. Sometimes we think of something traditional in a negative light. Where’s the progress and change and movement forward? Why are they stuck in the past?

When it comes to the holidays; however, many traditions are beloved rituals of the church or family. Traditions can give us a sense of where we have come from and remind us of the meaning of people and things who have gone before us. The Christmas season brings many important traditions for our Holy Cross family.

The Giving Tree. Holy Cross members have been faithfully supporting a giving tree that provides help at the holidays for approximately 25 years. In the late ‘90s, we began by supporting a ministry of Prison Fellowship called Angel Tree. Church members bought Christmas gifts for children who had a parent in prison. For the past 20 years or so, we have been providing gifts for mentally challenged adults and for needy children in our neighborhood schools. Many families have their children pick a tag for a similarly aged child and go together to shop for the perfect gift. Holy Cross has a beautiful tradition of giving.

Caroling. In years past, members gathered in Hiller Hall to enjoy a warm bowl of chili and then boarded trailers for a hayride through the neighboring streets singing songs of Christmas and spreading joy. The details have changed, but the tradition lives on as members now gather at Winslow Court on an evening in December to bring blessings and joy to the residents there.

The Christmas Program. What is Christmas without a church pageant? Whether it was halos made of garland for the miniature angel choir or the boys dressed in robes to portray shepherds, Holy Cross kids have been telling the story of Jesus’ birth for the past 50 years. Again, the details have sometimes changed from the familiar Bethlehem and stable setting to a Falafel House to a story set in a modern mall department store or at Jingle Bell Beach in recent years. However it is set, the tradition of sharing the miraculous and saving story of Jesus’ birth binds us together and gives us hope.

The Decorations. Trees have come and gone here at Holy Cross. We used to have one giant tree that could only be decorated with tall ladders and careful balance. We had a singles home group that took on the task of decorating for several years. They’d have a potluck meal and then spend a few hours fluffing bows, stringing lights, and discreetly duct taping broken branches. Currently, we have four trees that the staff and other volunteers decorate one morning at the start of Advent.

Though the trees may be different now, some of the special decorations remain. One member shared the story behind the cross-stitched Chrismons that adorn two of the trees in the sanctuary. When Tom Mroch was the pastor here, his wife faithfully served the church behind the scenes with her seemingly boundless energy. When she and her husband arrived at Holy Cross, she was concerned about the somewhat motley collection of ornaments she found. She conducted research on traditional symbols of the church and learned about Chrismons.

Chrismons are Christmas decorations with Christian symbols on them to remind us that Christmas is the celebration of Jesus’ birth.

The word Chrismon comes from the combination of Christ and monogram (meaning symbol). The decorations are traditionally white and gold because white is the liturgical color for Christmas and symbolizes Jesus’ purity and perfection while gold symbolizes His majesty and glory. The ornaments on our trees were a special project made by Holy Cross families. Mrs. Mroch made up cross stitch craft kits with instructions that each family took home to work on and then return. One of our members recalls the special bonding that happened as every family member took turns adding stitches (though they had never cross-stitched before!) and the pride of adding their ornament to the tree to be displayed for years to come. The project brought families and members of the church together then and knowing the story behind the ornaments that we still hang, can unite us with the people from that time and our history in general.

The most important tradition of Christmas, of course, is our celebration of the baby Jesus born in a manger, sent to save us from our sins. As we once again gather to sing “Silent Night” by candlelight on Christmas Eve, may you remember and be comforted by our shared faith, history, and hope.

By: DCE Dan Hampton

“WAR! What is it good for, absolutely nothing!” These lyrics written by Edwin Starr in 1970 evoke an era that was in turmoil. America was involved in what many people thought was an unjust war in Vietnam. While this kind of war is hard to understand at the time, just wars do serve a purpose in this broken world. But we need to learn to fight the right way, with the best resources, because winning a war doesn’t happen by accident.

From February 15-17, 2019 twelve couples spent a weekend learning to fight. Often when we think about married couples fighting it is not a positive sentiment; but in this case we learned who we are really fighting against. It is not our spouse, children, friends, or other family members we are really fighting. It is the Devil! He is the one that wants to remain hidden, because when we realize that it is not our spouse we are fighting, then we can both turn and repel the Devil and all his evil works and ways.

God worked His Holy Spirit throughout this weekend. For many couples it was a great time to reconnect with one another. Our lives are so busy, just having an in-depth conversation can be very difficult at times. This get-away allowed each couple to slow down and be fully present with each other. The weekend also allowed couples the chance to get to know other people in the congregation and form new relationships over some games, delicious food, and relaxing in natural hot springs.

War is still a difficult subject. No matter what, we must recognize that we are at war with the Devil and all of his minions. Prayer is how we fight; we must learn to battle the Devil in prayer. “If God is for us, who can be against us,” Paul writes in Romans 8:31. Our God is bigger than we can possibly imagine, and he can perform many miracles and defeat the Devil in ways that we cannot even imagine. If you would like to learn more about this topic I encourage you to watch the movie “War Room” that was released in 2015. The church also has several Bible studies; and even if you didn’t attend the Marriage Retreat, you are welcome to use the materials on your own to begin to learn how to fight for your marriage in prayer.

Click here to see the Holy Cross War Room Marriage Study Guide.

By: Jeff Faunce

Holy Cross at Compassion Project 223 in Tegucigalpa, Honduras and Betesda – Naranjo

Revelation 7:9-10. 9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

I’ve loved this verse for many years. It speaks of the universality of God’s people—that God’s eternal people will gather to praise Him from every nation, tribe, people, and language. It has become more meaningful after participating in Holy Cross mission trips to Honduras. I’d read that verse before and heard the stories of others who had been in mission around the world, but neither prepared me for the experience of seeing God’s global grace in person. His grace truly is amazing!

Again this year, as our team of 21 souls traveled to Lepaterique and Tegucigalpa Honduras, God reinforced that He is God of the whole world and that the language of faith is universal. How else to explain the instant bond we have with our brothers and sisters at Betesda church in Lepaterique and at Compassion Project 223 in Tegucigalpa? How else to explain the amazement that new travelers experience when they are welcomed with all the love that only brothers and sisters in Christ share?

The partnership between Holy Cross and the people of Honduras is a special one. If there is one thing I would like you to know it is that God is growing His kingdom among the people there and that you are making a difference. We see it year to year. There is progress in the day to day lives of people and eternally through faith.

In the early years we would join Betesda (Pastor Omar’s church) in worship—one year illuminated only by the lights of an old truck—and see a congregation that was just beginning to come together. But they came together in the joy of the Lord.

As the host of Compassion Project 222, Betesda chose to focus on children. Back then, that focus was necessarily on the children of Betesda and Lepaterique. They didn’t’t have the resources to do more. However, as the years have gone on, God has blessed the partnership between Betesda and Holy Cross. He has given the people of Holy Cross generous hearts—and He has fanned the flames of outreach among the people of Betesda. The combination of resources and relentless outreach has resulted in an additional 11 churches being planted across the countryside outside of Lepaterique. Literally hundreds of additional children and their families are hearing the eternal hope of the gospel and benefiting from help here and now in this world.

The people of Betesda and the outlying villages are blessed by your sponsorship of children through Compassion International. We see evidence in every child and home we visit. They are blessed by Holy Cross mission funds that they turn into self-sustaining agriculture at each church site. They are blessed as the Honduras Golf Tournament raises funds to give promising young Christian leaders the opportunity to advance their education. They are blessed by what you contribute to trip supplies and to the assembly of hygiene kits. And they are blessed when you purchase coffee, grown by the labor of God’s people, employing 20 families and giving them hope and a purpose.

One of my favorite stories revolves around one of Betesda’s satellite congregations, Naranjo. The people of Naranjo came to Pastor Omar and said, “We need a new building. The one we have is rotting away and is not safe for our people.” Pastor Omar replied, “I know you need a new building, but we simply don’t have the resources at this time.”

The people of Naranjo got together and said, “We will pray and we will clear the land for a new building.” They cleared the land and one of the elders took a stone and placed it at the corner of the newly cleared site. He said, “It is on this site that God will build His church. We will pray and watch God work.”

At the same time in the halls of Holy Cross, I was approached, without prompting, by several members who asked, “What do you need for Honduras this year?” I had just heard about the needs of Naranjo. I tell you, within two hours we had the necessary funds to purchase the materials for a new building.

We wired the money to Pastor Omar, who purchased the material in anticipation of our trip. We arrived on a Friday expecting to see cleared land and a pile of material ready for us to help assemble into a new sanctuary. What we found was a church building nearly complete. The people had worked 20 straight days to put up the building we all would end up worshiping in the following Sunday. Now that’s a partnership! Each doing what they can under God’s direction to accomplish something greater than the sum of the parts.

I hope this blog post has given you a glimpse into this special ministry. I also hope you will continue to be a part of what God is doing through this partnership. Perhaps your next step is coming on a trip? Ask anyone who has gone, or contact Lorrie or me directly. We’d love to speak with you about being a part of this ministry now and into the future.